Grey Stains
by Wolfie-Dragon
Summary: Hogwarts AU. When Harry Potter escaped Gringotts on the back of a dragon and flew off towards the battle of Hogwarts, most of the Wizarding World saw a hero. Hiccup witnessed something very different that day. It makes going to Hogwarts difficult, especially when you're also bad at magic, your dad is paranoid about dragons, and rumors of neo-Death Eaters threaten the fragile peace.
1. A Trip down Memory Lane

Hiccup broke out into coughs the moment he hit the ground. The world span around him, unfocused and blurred, as he tried not to suffocate.

"Oh, come on, son. Apparating is not _that _bad," Stoick said, roughly pulling him up by his armpits from the dusty courtyard tiles.

"You-" Hiccup couldn't finish his retort at first, too busy getting air back into his lungs. The dust, the tight suffocating space he had just been in, it brought back flashes. Screams. Crumbling masonry.

"Easy for you to say. You're not... allergic to dust and tight spaces," he eventually managed to spit out. Stoick scoffed for a second, but didn't start a rant at least. Hiccup was grateful for that. Whenever he'd panic at a small room or dust cloud Stoick would normally complain that he should 'man up' already since he was not "actually allergic to dust".

Maybe he was right, but that didn't mean Hiccup didn't get physically sick every time he had to face it.

"Look, you're okay, so let's get your stuff. You have your list, right?" Stoick asked, grabbing his wand and tapping several stones on the wall next to him. Hiccup reached into his pocket to grab the parchment he received last week.

His acceptance letter to Hogwarts.

"Great! Now, first of all we should go to Gringotts. All these books aren't cheap, and it's time you get your own account as well. That way you can collect interest on your allowance, and use it for Hogsmeade trips and things like that," his father said, as the wall opened up to reveal Diagon Alley. It was filled with people.

The last time Hiccup had been there it had been nearly deserted.

"I don't want to go to Gringotts. That's where-" he started, unable to finish the sentence when his throat closed up. Just like with the apparition he couldn't breathe at the memory.

Stoick sighed loudly, the disappointment clear, but then he knelt so he was closer to Hiccup's eye level.

"That was seven years ago. Nothing will happen now. It's all safe. You're growing up! You're going to Hogwarts, and take your place in our world. And for that, you need a Gringotts account. Plus, it'll look bad if the son of the Head of the Department of Magical Creatures didn't get an account at the bank run by our biggest allies!" he said.

At that moment Hiccup couldn't care less about relations with goblins, but he still nodded slowly.

"Okay. I'll try," he whispered.

"Attaboy! Now let's go, we don't have all day!" Stoick shouted, getting up and turning to Diagon Alley, his long cloak flapping with the motion. Hiccup almost had to run to keep up with his huge steps. People parted at the sight of the 7-feet tall man wearing gilded ministry robes, so they got through the crowd easily.

The goblin guards at the enormous bank doors recognized Stoick, so they greeted him warmly, and he returned the greeting before briskly walking inside. Hiccup followed, unsure if the goblins had even noticed him at half his father's height.

It took a moment for his eyes to adjust to the light inside, with the white marble and shining gold all over the place.

"Wait here for a second," Stoick told him before walking right past the queue of wizards and witches and talking to the goblin teller. The people waiting in line shot him dirty looks, but the ministry robes stopped them from protesting.

"But…" Hiccup whispered, not wanting to be alone. Not here. The tiles were too clean and white. They had been stained red with blood. A mother and her young son pushed past him to join the queue. The boy was licking ice cream. Hiccup got a whiff of the scent of vanilla cream, and all of a sudden he was outside in Diagon Alley again, but it was much emptier.

Abandoned shops and boarded-up windows lined the street, but 4-year old Hiccup didn't care, because Mama just bought him ice cream from the new parlour. As they waited in line Hiccup heard adults talking about the old ice cream vendor having vanished, but he hadn't understood it, and it hadn't mattered. He got his vanilla ice cream, and then they all walked to the bank together, him between his parents. They had explained that they just had to check on something there real quick, and then they'd go back home.

The building had been chaotic when they entered. Dozens of goblin guards ran around, and a barricade was being set up at the gate to the tunnels. Stoick was pulled away by an anxious-looking goblin with grey hair, leaving Hiccup alone with his mom.

"Mama, what's happening?" he asked between licks of his ice cream.

"Nothing, it's fine. There's just something your father and I have to… make sure doesn't get out of hand," she said, before ruffling his hair. The sudden move made him smear some ice cream on the collar of his shirt. "Oh, you're so clumsy. Let's clean that up."

She had just taken her wand out of her pocket when the world turned upside down.

A massive shockwave knocked them off their feet. Hiccup saw the wand fly out of her hand as they fell. A roar echoed through the room, answered by screams and shouts.

His head pounded where it hit the marble floor, and when he turned to look at the source of the noise it felt like he was dreaming.

Large parts of the floor were missing, and more tiles crumbled into the dark hole that had been white marble moments ago. A desk covered with documents and coins slid over the edge, despite a goblin trying to hold onto it. Hiccup couldn't look away from the screaming creature falling in and disappearing from sight. But then his mama grabbed him and pulled him back, and he looked up.

There was an enormous dragon towering over them. It was thin and white, and its huge eyes were milky. On its back were three people, but they were too far away for him to make out.

"Hiccup, get back," Mama shouted, pulling him behind an overturned desk. His hands were shaking, and he realized there was ice cream all over them. The dragon roared, the sound making Hiccup's ears hurt. It was followed with a cacophony of shouts and screams, and he covered his ears with his sticky hands.

A burst of flame shot over their heads, hitting a group of people near the door who screamed in agony.

"Stay here," his mom said, making him look away from the man whose robes were on fire. She stood up and slowly walked towards the dragon, hands in the air.

"Mama!" he shouted, the word lost in the noise as the dragon's tail smashed through a pillar. It shattered into a hundred pieces that rained down on the people around it.

"It's okay. Just calm down. You're a good dragon. It's alright. No one will hurt you." Somehow Hiccup could hear his mother's soft words among the chaos. The dragon turned to her, growling aggressively despite the people on its back pulling at its horns. A puff of smoke escaped its nostrils.

"Mama! Mama no!" Hiccup screamed, climbing on top of the desk as the dragon put its nose right next to his mother, who looked so tiny compared to the enormous creature. It sniffed and growled more. Mama's arm trembled as she slowly raised it.

One of the people on the dragon's back, a man with red hair, cast some kind of spell at the creature, making it groan. Its jaws opened, revealing rows of enormous fangs. Despite the black soot covering them they looked razor-sharp, and Hiccup had never felt so scared in his life.

BANG!

A flash of light and a loud bang shook the hall. The goblins cowered as the dragon roared in pain and fury.

"No, no, it's okay, just calm down, NOOOO!"

Hiccup was frozen as the dragon charged forward blindly. It felt like time slowed down as Mama put her hands in front of her face in a futile attempt to block.

Her scream ended with a horrific crushing sound as the dragon's front paw came down on her.

Suddenly there were more flashes of all colors, more shouts, more magic, but none of it existed. The dragon screamed, thrashing around wildly as spells hit it. More pillars crumbled and collapsed, and parts of the ceiling fell around him. None of it was real. None of this could be real.

"Mama! Mama! MAMA!" Hiccup screamed, frozen in place on top of the overturned desk.

"Hiccup, get away from there!" someone shouted, but he couldn't understand it. Why wasn't Mama getting up?

The dragon charged forward, straight into the wall of the building, opening it up to bright beams of sunlight that reflected on blue gems and white debris and pools of blood. With a final roar, it opened its wings and took flight with a single flap that drove a cloud of dust through the hall. It made Hiccup cough, and he didn't see the ceiling above him crack.

"Hiccup!" his father's voice shouted. It seemed so far away. The ceiling came down, on his Mama, on the goblins, on him. Brutal pain raced through his arm and back.

"Hiccup! Hiccup!" He blinked, and suddenly he was back in a clean and calm room. There was a ceiling and four walls and no screaming. His father was kneeling in front of him.

"Are you there? Come on, stop daydreaming. It's time to visit the vaults. I'm sure you'll like the cart ride!" he said, and Hiccup shook his head. His arm ached, despite the fracture having healed seven years ago. He didn't remember much of it. Being trapped under the stone, unable to breathe, for a minute until his father and other wizards could dig him out. A hospital bed. Left alone as his dad suddenly had to do a million things.

The next day the war was over. Ended by the three people he had seen riding the dragon.

"I… I'm fine," he whispered, trying to look strong in front of the old goblin standing next to Stoick.

"That's my boy! You see, Gringotts ain't so bad. You know what, if you're good during the cart ride, I'll get you an owl!"

Hiccup managed not to throw up during the cart ride. In fact it was quite exhilarating, like flying his broomstick back at the mansion. He rarely got the opportunity to do that, since his father was always nervous about dragons hiding in the clouds, waiting to strike.

The ride was over far too quickly, and then it was just a matter of moving coins around. Hiccup received a key to an empty vault, with promises it would fill up while he was at Hogwarts.

The ride back to the surface was even faster than the first cart, though Hiccup found it harder to enjoy, his stomach sinking when he caught a glimpse of the large doors leading back to the main hall. His dad seemed to sense his mood, and simply ushered them through the room quickly without stopping to speak to passersby like he normally did.

It wasn't until they stood outside in the bright midday sun that Hiccup felt like he could breathe again.

"Alright, let's get your school supplies first, it'll be much easier if we don't have to carry an owl around all day. What do you wanna get first? How about the books, you're always buried in those," Stoick asked. Hiccup resisted the urge to snark about how there was nothing else to do at the mansion but read, and instead focused on happier things.

"Can we get my wand?" he asked, already walking towards the shops and away from the bank.

A minute later they entered a tiny shop called Ollivander's, and the oldest man Hiccup had ever seen greeted them. He was almost completely bald, the few strands of hair that remained were wispy and white. His face and neck bore many scars, and his eyes felt like they looked straight into Hiccup's soul.

"Oh, Mr. Haddock! It feels like yesterday that I sold you your wand. 11 and a quarter inches, holly wood, with a dragon heartstring core, is that correct? I hope it's still working well for you," the man said with a croaky voice.

"Yes, it is," Stoick said, frowning at the mention of the dragon heartstring core. "But we're not here for me. My son is going to Hogwarts and he needs a wand."

Hiccup tried to smile, despite feeling very uncomfortable around the old man he assumed was Ollivander. The wand would be worth it. He'd be able to do magic!

"Ah, of course. Let's see… How about 9 and three quarter inches, yew, unicorn hair? Nice and straightforward," Ollivander said, opening a narrow box on the counter and handing it to Hiccup. "Go on, give it a swing!"

His hand trembled slightly when he took the wand. This would allow him to do magic! He'd only have to swing it! So he took a deep breath and gently swung the wand.

Nothing happened.

Ollivander ignored his surprise at the lack of sparks, snatching the wand from his hand and giving him another. "Pear, 10 and a half inches, dragon heartstring!"

"Wait a minute, you still use dragon heartstring? I banned all dragon products years ago," Stoick said as Hiccup swung a few times, still with no result.

"Eh, that just banned me from buying more. I have a huge stock of heartstring, Mr. Haddock. And there's absolutely nothing evil about it, no matter what you might believe. Now, try this one: Blackthorn, 12 inches, unicorn hair," the old man said, giving Hiccup another wand and grabbing more boxes from a shelf.

Stoick scoffed at that, but didn't push further. Instead he sat down in the small chair in the corner. The wood creaked under his weight. Hiccup tried to cast a hovering spell with the long wand, copying the movement he saw Mrs. Beakley, their housekeeper, use whenever she used Wingardium Leviosa.

Absolutely nothing happened. Of course he hadn't said the words, but still, it felt like he was failing at this.

"There's nothing to worry about. This happens to a lot of people. Your mother tried 23 wands before one chose her. Your father needed a dozen tries too," Ollivander said, piling up boxes on the counter and handing another one over. "Rosewood, 11 inches, phoenix feather, great for charms."

"Shouldn't something be coming out anyway? I remember producing fire and smoke with all the wands I tried," Stoick said, shifting in the chair.

"Indeed, wizards can produce intuitive magic even with wands that haven't chosen them, but it's much harder. There's degrees in this, some wands make it harder, some easier. In fact, let's try… Larch, 10 and a quarter inch, unicorn hair," Ollivander said as another wand was pushed into Hiccup's hands.

Another swing, and still nothing.

"Oh, that's a little strange. Still, I'm sure there's a wand for you. I do love a difficult customer!" Ollivander exclaimed, flicking his own wand to make entire stacks of boxes float towards the counter.

Hiccup had tried 51 wands with no result when his father stood up, the chair squeaking loudly in relief.

"Well, this looks like it's going to… take a while. How about I buy the rest of your supplies while you keep trying," he said, wrapping his cloak tighter around himself. Hiccup sighed, giving him the list.

Ollivander wasn't deterred by the ever growing pile of tried wands, marking their boxes with a small H and putting them back on the shelves while grabbing new ones. Meanwhile Hiccup swung and swung and swung some more.

A while later, long after Hiccup lost count, the door opened again. A blonde girl ran in, followed by a blond man with a long beard and auror robes.

"Astrid, no need to run. We have plenty of time," the man said as the girl ran right next to Hiccup, stopping him mid-swing. She was pretty, despite her scowl and narrowed eyes.

"Ah, Mr. Finn Hofferson! Is that blackthorn wand still working for you? And who is this? I didn't know you had children," Ollivander said, dumping another armful of wands on Hiccup's end of the counter. Hiccup took one, swung it, and slid it to the other end when it didn't work. As he pushed it, he noticed the girl looking at him and the pile of wands strangely.

"This is Astrid, my niece on my brother's side. I took her in after…" the auror said, putting his hand on Astrid's shoulder when her head dropped.

"Ah, of course. It's very nice to meet you, young witch. I sold your brother and sister their wands, you know. Though that was over a decade ago. They must have left Hogwarts around the… oh, right," Ollivander said, Astrid immediately snapping her head up to look at him with piercing eyes.

"Can we just get her wand? She's feisty, maybe a blackthorn one like mine?" Finn said, obviously eager to change the subject that Hiccup didn't really understand.

"Of course, of course. How about you try this one. Just swing it, like Hiccup over here does," Ollivander said. Hiccup, startled by her bright blue eyes, dropped the wand he was swinging, making it clatter loudly.

"Try not to drop it, though. Blackthorn, 11 inches, dragon heartstring," Ollivander said, grabbing a wand from the used pile and handing it to the girl. Frowning, she swung it once, and immediately sparks exploded from the tip. Her frown turned into a smile instantly.

"Not quite right. How about holly, 12 and a quarter inch, phoenix feather," Ollivander said as Hiccup swung another wand, trying not to look too disappointed when nothing happened.

Astrid swung the wand, and a moment later a vase exploded.

"Ooh, a little too temperamental. Ah, I know. Red oak, dragon heartstring, 9 and a half inches. A perfect wand for dueling and combat!" The wandmaker dug in the pile, finding a thin reddish wand and handing it over.

The moment Astrid touched it, her jaw dropped. With a firm hand, she swung it, and a soft glow emitted from the wand. She smiled brightly, and Hiccup couldn't help but smile as well.

"Perfect, perfect! It has chosen you! Congratulations, Ms. Hofferson. I'm sure you'll overcome great foes with this wand. Perhaps your biggest challenge will be deciding who those foes shall be," Ollivander told a brightly smiling Astrid. But then she glanced at Hiccup swinging another unresponsive wand and her smile dropped a bit. He couldn't help but wonder if she considered him a potential foe.

After another round of congratulations from Finn, payment was exchanged and the Hoffersons left the store, leaving behind an empty silence with no crackling sparks or exploding chinaware.

"Is that what's supposed to happen? What happens to everybody else?" he eventually asked, tossing another wand on the counter a little harder than he needed to.

Ollivander sighed deeply.

"Usually, yes. Untrained witches and wizards tend to send uncontrolled magic through every object they touch, and wands react to that magic, even if they didn't choose the wizard. It's almost like you're already trained. Did your father get you private tutoring?" the old man asked, sorting out the wands Astrid had tried and marking more boxes with an H.

"Yes, but not for this. I haven't learned any magic or spells. They just teach me history or Latin," Hiccup said, swinging again. He could feel _something _whenever he swung, a brief spark of burning heat in his fingertips like he grasped a candle flame. But it wasn't a good feeling like he always imagined magic would feel.

"Strange. But that just makes it more interesting! Come on, keep trying!" Ollivander said, and Hiccup did. His arm ached from the motion by the time his father returned with a bag full of books and potion supplies.

"You're still going?! Come on, Hiccup! I have more things to do today, you know," Stoick said, putting the bag down and gesturing at the piles of wands.

"I can't help it. They won't work!" Hiccup said, grabbing another one, swinging it with no effect, and tossing it on the used pile.

"You just have to do some magic! I know you can do it, you're not a damn squib!" his father shouted, sitting down heavily in the chair. Hiccup saw a crack run down one of its legs.

"I'm trying! Do you think I don't want this to work?" he said, grabbing a random wand from the pile.

"Well, try harder! You've been in here for hours! People are gonna notice," Stoick said, glancing out the window, and all the frustration Hiccup had been building up exploded.

"Is that all you care about? That random people will notice I'm having trouble finding a wand!" he screamed, raising the wand to point at his father.

Heat raced down his arms, burning his veins. The wand trembled in his shaking hand, and then the heat focused in his fingertips. It became too much, the fire scorching him from within.

But then suddenly the heat disappeared, replaced with a red flame bursting from the wand's tip. Hiccup yelped, dropping it from his tingling fingers. As quick as it had appeared, the fire vanished.

The only sound in the room was the wand clattering on the floorboards.

"See, you can do magic! That wand worked, right? Mr. Ollivander! What do you think?" Stoick said, smiling brightly despite soot darkening his beard.

"Accidental magic, yes, but still magic. No doubt. So there must be a wand for you. That one wasn't it, though. Let's keep going. There's still plenty of wands left," the old man slowly said.

No one seemed to care about Hiccup's pained sigh as he picked up another wand and gave it a swing. It did nothing. Just the same flash of painful heat in his fingertips as before. Nothing like the burst of actual magic he had just felt.

An hour later, after a boy by the name of Hiro came in and got his wand on the first try, Stoick stood up and grabbed the bag of supplies.

"That's enough. This is going nowhere. Clearly there's something very wrong with these wands. We'll go see better wandmakers tomorrow. I hear there's a good one in New York. One who doesn't use dragon products either," he said, putting his hand on Hiccup's shoulder and pulling him away from the counter.

"Very well. Every wandmaker will tell you there's nothing wrong with dragon heartstring cores, but clearly you've made up your mind based on a completely unrelated event, _Department Head Haddock_," Ollivander said in an icy tone. Stoick huffed, but didn't respond. He just stomped out the shop dragging Hiccup along with him.

He gave Mr. Ollivander an apologetic smile as his father slammed the door shut.

"That impudent- No matter. There's plenty of other wandmakers," Stoick said, moving towards the Leaky Cauldron.

"But Dad… You said I was gonna get an owl," Hiccup asked, not as excited as he had been before they went into the wand shop.

"Ugh… Fine. We'll get that owl, then we go home," Stoick said, turning around with heavy footsteps. The street was much emptier now that the sun was setting.

The cacophony of roars and meows and squawks in the pet store was the complete opposite of the silence of Ollivander's. And yet Hiccup felt much more at ease around the animals. There were no other customers inside.

"Hey, you! I'm looking for an owl for my son," Stoick shouted at a young woman standing behind the counter. Hiccup walked to a wall filled with bird cages. The owls were fairly quiet compared to the other creatures. He reached out his finger to a yellow-blueish owl with bright blue eyes.

Hiccup gently scratched the bird, and it opened its beak wide. A puff of smoke came out.

"Of course! What kind of personality would you like? We have several: playful, obedient, intel-"

The clerk's words were cut off by Hiccup's scream when the bird breathed fire. It was just a tiny flame, hardly bigger than a torch, but it conjured images of crumbling masonry and blood. The scream emptied his lungs, and he couldn't breathe to fill them again. He stumbled and fell, coughing at the musky air.

"What in Merlin's name is that! I demand answers!" Stoick shouted as he drew his wand, pointing it at the bird.

"It's a magical fusion! An owl with the magical abilities of a Blast-ended Skrewt! We got it from a wizard who experiments with transferring abilities between creatures!" she said quickly, running over and petting the fire-breathing bird.

"How do I know it's not some dragon monstrosity? Do you know who I am? I am Stoick Haddock, head of the Department of Magical Creatures. I introduced the laws against draconic experimentation, and if I suspect any violation of that law I could shut this place down right now!"

Hiccup finally managed to catch his breath, raising his head to see all the blood drain from the clerk's face.

"No, I swear it's nothing draconic! Please, sir! Have a free owl, any one you want!" she said, hands trembling.

"I don't trust anything you sell!" Stoick said, tone icy as he kept his wand raised. The woman's eyes flickered between the wand and the ministry badge on his robes.

"Then let me compensate you. For the… emotional damages!," she shouted, before running to the till. "Here, this is more than enough to buy an owl at any other pet store!" she said, holding up several gold coins. Stoick was silent for a few seconds, until he slowly lowered his wand.

"Fine, I'll take that. And you better hope I never hear of any kind of creature experimentation again."

It wasn't until they were standing outside again that Hiccup had calmed down enough to speak.

"I wanted an owl. Not that one, but a normal one," he said, glaring at his fuming father.

"Maybe we'll get one in New York tomorrow. At least in America they protect well against these… abominations. I'm trying to get those laws here as well, but no one wants to cooperate!" Stoick said as they made it back to the courtyard of the Leaky Cauldron.

"Now grab on. We're going home," he said, gesturing at his arm. Hiccup shook his head violently.

"No, I can't do apparition again! Please, Dad!" he begged, breath speeding up at the very thought of that narrow tube. The anger he had felt over the owl vanished, frozen by the memory.

"Come on, Hiccup! It's better than floo powder. You can't handle that at all! Just swallow your fears already so we can go home," Stoick said, shaking his head in disappointment. Hiccup just jumped back.

"I can't!" he shouted, tears pricking at his eyes.

Stoick was quiet for a long time, staring at him with furrowed brow, until his face softened.

"Fine. We'll take the Knight's Bus, even if it is dreadfully uncomfortable. And we can take a portkey to New York tomorrow, you're okay with those, right?" he said, leading them through the Leaky Cauldron to the muggle street outside. An old witch tried to talk to Stoick, but he waved her away. The other people in the bar just looked at him darkly.

"Yeah, I guess. Thanks, Dad," Hiccup whispered, thinking back to the girl at Ollivander's and wondering if she was scared of anything.

* * *

**Welcome to my new story, Grey Stains! I have been planning this story for years, so I'm very excited to finally share it. I'm hoping to update this weekly, so every Sunday. Please let me know what you think! And if there's anything unclear or confusing, don't hesitate to ask! **

**For those still following Bursts of Light, I will finish it, I just have to figure out one little plot snag first. But it will be finished very soon, I promise!**


	2. Sorting Things Out

**Hey everyone, here's chapter 2 of Grey Stains. Our first glimpse of Hogwarts, and backstory for Astrid! I hope you enjoy it! Leave a review or comment if you do!**

**One thing I would like to address here are the side characters. Pretty much all side characters like professors and classmates, are lifted from other franchises that I enjoy. However, you shouldn't feel obligated to know all (or any) of them to understand my story. They're simply there to add some color to the scenes, and because I think having Hiro and Rayla is more interesting and easy to remember for you, the reader, than Ravenclaw OC #1 and Gryffindor OC #2. So if you don't know a character in the story, I hope the context explains enough about them. If you do know the character, I hope you enjoy some of the in-jokes I put in. After this chapter their presence should be less overwhelming, as the story will focus more on Hiccup and Astrid proper. **

* * *

"And we're here, with fifteen minutes to spare! Those Muggle 'taxis' are faster than I thought!" Astrid's uncle Finn said as he led the way into King's Cross Station. It was filled with people, and the loud announcements and screeching of the trains made Astrid's head hurt. Her owl, a yellow-blue bird with the powers of a Blast-ended Skrew who she named Stormfly, screeched loudly, and she hoped none of the Muggles would notice the puff of smoke coming out of Stormfly's beak.

"I keep telling you, the Muggles are smarter than you assume, but you never believe me!" Aunt Erika said. They kept bickering about transportation as they walked onto platform 9. Astrid recognized a man standing there, despite him wearing Muggle clothes. It was Mr. Cruz, one of the aurors working with her uncle. He was subtly guiding wizard families towards the column dividing platforms 9 and 10.

Finn and Erika stopped their argument to greet him, and a minute later they got the signal to go. Astrid looked at the solid brick wall in front of her, and she suddenly felt scared. No, no, she can't be scared. She's gonna be a proud Gryffindor, she has to be brave! So she gritted her teeth and ran right after her guardians.

Although she _may _have closed her eyes before reaching the wall. There was a brief sensation of her moving through what felt like liquid, but then the sounds warped and changed. The Muggle talk and modern trains vanished, replaced by the sounds of magic and the hissing of a steam engine.

"Alright girl, are you ready? Oh, you grew up so quickly! Don't be afraid to send us letters, okay? It's normal to feel a bit lonely at first! But I'm sure you'll make lots of friends!" Erika said, rubbing her cheek.

"Thanks, Aunt Erika. I'll try," she said as Finn took her suitcase and lifted it onto the train. Astrid wanted to protest, say that she could do it herself. But before she could open her mouth he turned to her with that look that meant he was going to say something important. He kneeled, putting himself a little below her eye level, but she still felt small.

"Astrid… I'm sorry your parents couldn't be here to see you off. Or your sister. But I know that your mom and dad and Celia would be so, so proud of you. And so is your brother Max, even if he couldn't make it to London because of his work. And we are so proud of you too. You know, after the Battle… there was so much destruction. So much death, and it felt so hopeless. But we took you in, and in you we saw _hope_. That war ended because people like your parents and your siblings stood up and fought against evil. They fought to give you a better world to grow up in. And I know you'll work to fight the evils of your time. It's different now, you know. Less open. Don't forget that some people still have those… evil beliefs, even if they won't say it out loud. But I know you'll do the right thing. You're strong," he said, putting his hands on her shoulders.

Astrid tried to look him in the eye, but she felt tears appear, and she dropped her head trying to hide it. She wasn't so sure if Max was proud of her. They had barely spoken in years. He was abroad, studying Healing in Italy, and rarely replied to letters. She rarely felt like sending him letters either. They had never been super close, Astrid had liked her sister Celia more back when she was alive, and six months after the Battle of Hogwarts Max had left Britain, finishing his NEWTs at Beauxbatons and traveling Europe ever since.

As she looked around, seeing parents hugging their children, siblings teasing each other, laughing together, she wanted to shout that it wasn't fair. Her family had been torn apart by Death Eaters, and these people were all perfectly fine?

But no, she couldn't do that. Like Uncle Finn always said, she should be grateful she has what she has. Entire families had been slaughtered, Muggleborns tortured until they were left permanently insane at St. Mungo's, babies killed and turned into Inferi and other monsters. Her pain was nothing compared to that.

So she forced herself to smile and nod.

"I'll fight for the light, Uncle Finn. Like you taught me! I'll be a brave Gryffindor like you and Dad and Celia! Not to mention Harry Potter and Ron Weasley and Hermione Granger!"

"Alright, little lion, just remember it's okay if you end up in another house. Of course, I know you want to end up in Gryffindor like your heroes. Just remember the other houses did great things too. Hell, your brother was a Slytherin and he fought alongside Neville Longbottom for the entire battle!" Aunt Erika said, and Astrid rolled her eyes.

"I know, Auntie! Doesn't mean they're not dorks," she said. Behind her aunt and uncle she could see the boy from the wand shop walk past, with his messy brown hair and expensive robes. A bald man with two prosthetic limbs walked alongside him. His father? They didn't look related. Something about the boy made her nervous. When she saw him at Ollivander's, waving wand after wand with no effect, she had thought he might be a squib. But if he was going to Hogwarts he should be magical, right?

After some goodbyes and awkward hugs Astrid boarded the train. She walked through the corridor, checking for any empty cabins but not finding any. Eventually she found one with three girls of her age, and decided she might as well get started on making friends.

"Hello!" she said, trying to seem confident as she opened the door and pulled her suitcase inside. The white-haired girl turned to her, revealing strange purple markings under her eyes.

"Hi, I'm Rayla, and these are Merida and Pidge. Merida and I already knew each other, we grew up in the same town," the girl said in a thick Scottish accent, gesturing to two girls who both had their own style of wild hair. Merida had a wild mane of curly bright red hair, while Pidge had short dirty blonde hair that stuck out in all directions and looked like she cut it herself.

"I'm Astrid," she said, sitting down next to Pidge.

They easily got to talking, and Astrid learned that Rayla's family situation was similar to hers: Her parents had gone missing during the war, and she was raised by a family friend called Runaan. Pidge was Muggleborn, but her brother Matt was magical too, and was currently a Ravenclaw prefect. Merida was from a very old wizarding house, and her father lost a leg fighting evil creatures in the war.

"So what do you think you'll be when you grow up? My parents keep trying to push me into politics, that I'll have to keep managing our ancient house, but I say sod that!" Merida said, her accent even thicker than Rayla's.

"Probably inventing. I'm good at figuring out tech and stuff. I'm curious if I can use magic in Muggle computers," Pidge said. Astrid wasn't sure what she was talking about. Before she could ask, Rayla spoke up.

"This is probably weird, but Runaan is part of an elite group of aurors, and he kind of expects me to join him. Not sure if I want to, though," she said, rolling her eyes.

"My uncle is an auror too. That's what I always expected to be. Never really considered anything else. I want to fight evil like my family did," Astrid said, trying not to think about how often Uncle Finn had come home with dead eyes after another raid. Those were evenings he wouldn't say a word. He'd just grab a bottle of firewhiskey and slowly empty it while listening to old songs on the radio.

"I'll stick to making weapons for you, I guess. Way safer than being on the frontlines," Pidge chuckled, adjusting her round glasses. Astrid wondered if she knew they looked just like Harry Potter's glasses.

* * *

"Come on, Gobber! Aren't I supposed to make friends? Meet people? Doesn't Dad always say networking is important?" Hiccup exclaimed, gesturing at the locked door of their cabin.

"Your father gave me strict instructions not to let you out of my sight until you're safe at Hogwarts. He may not be my direct boss, but you know I can't ignore an order from him! He's got influence! That curse on the Defense Against the Dark Arts teaching position is finally gone, and I'll be damned if I lose the job anyway because you can't stay put for a few hours!" Gobber shouted, pointing at Hiccup with his prosthetic hand.

"What does he think is gonna happen? Death Eaters kidnapping me? People angry about his policies attacking me? What even for? My dad is the most apolitical politician ever, he doesn't care about any ideology. All he cares about is slaying dragons," Hiccup said, looking out the window at London disappearing behind them.

"Oh, don't play dumb. You know what this is about. Stoick is worried that the Red Death will attack the train. I figured that you of all people should understand that," Gobber said, digging in his bag with his good hand.

"You know I don't live my life cowering in fear of dragons every moment, right? My dad may be obsessed, but I'm not. It's ridiculous. Like that Red Death would actually attack us," Hiccup said, looking up at the cloudy sky. Could dragons be hiding up there?

"Hey, I agree that Stoick is paranoid about dragons, but he's not wrong about the Red Death. It has killed fourteen muggles and three mages in the past year. Despite nearly all the Department of Magical Creatures' resources being devoted to hunting it, it has eluded your father for years," Gobber said as he pulled a chess set from his bag. Hiccup looked away from the window just in time to see the man take his wand out and placing it on the bench beside him.

"I just… He's always locked me up at home in fear of it, and I figured that now that I get to go to Hogwarts I'd finally be… free. But he's still locking me up," Hiccup muttered, glancing at his own wand. According to the eighth wandmaker they had visited this summer, in Beijing, it was the best wand money could buy. Hiccup had tried thousands of wands in shops all over the world, and none had chosen him, so Stoick had bought him this. Maybe at Hogwarts he'd learn how to use it.

"Oh, don't think like that. It's just until we reach the castle. You'll be safe there, and I won't have to babysit you anymore," Gobber chuckled, and Hiccup tried to smile. "Now, since we're stuck together we might as well pass the time with some chess!" the man said, laying the board on the table as the pieces jumped out of the box, taking their positions with loud boasts and battlecries.

They played for a while. Gobber won the first game, and they took a break when a nice lady knocked on the door to ask if they wanted any candy. Gobber bought a large brick of chocolate for them both. The sugar seemed to make Hiccup more alert, and he easily won the next three games.

"Looks like you'll be a Ravenclaw with those brains. What house would you like to be in?" Gobber asked as his broken black pieces put themselves back together with loud groans and whimpers. Hiccup shrugged.

"Haven't really thought about it. I guess everyone always says Gryffindor, but I'm not so sure. Maybe Slytherin, to piss off Dad," he said as his king and queen led his white pieces back onto the field.

"Honestly I think he'd be more disappointed if you ended up a Hufflepuff. He often complains they're 'too nice' and 'care too much about dangerous creatures'," Gobber said. "But with the way you're slaughtering me, I don't think you're nice enough for that."

* * *

As he climbed out of the rickety boat Hiccup didn't feel like Hogwarts was a very magical place. It was raining, and the summer warmth was blown away by a cold wind.

"Why did we have to go all the way to London for the train if Hogwarts is right next door? And now a boat! I hate water!" a Scottish voice from the next boat said, and Hiccup looked over to see a white-haired girl looking sick as she jumped onto land. Her robes were simple and sturdy compared to his gilded silk robes that did nothing to keep him warm.

"Such weird boats. Ours back home are much sturdier!" a girl with long brown hair said as she climbed out beside Hiccup. "I'm Katara, by the way. Katara Waters."

"I'm Hiccup," he said loudly to be heard over the howling wind. They hadn't had much of a chance to speak during the boat ride.

"Alright, head inside now, let's hurry!" Gobber shouted, helping a black-haired girl out of one of the boats. She looked very annoyed, and when Hiccup looked closer he noticed her eyes were blank and milky. For a second the dragon's eyes from that day in Gringotts flashed in his mind. Katara waved her wand and did a strange movement with her other hand, and the rain above them was diverted, like she was holding a large umbrella. Hiccup gladly took the opportunity to look away from the blind girl and focus on something else.

"You can do that already?" he asked, fingers rolling over his own wand on his belt.

"It's magic from my tribe, I learned it from my gran-gran," she said, continuing the odd spell.

"I thought Hagrid was supposed to guide the first-years?" one of the boys asked as the last of the boats docked, water splashing over the side as its occupants jumped out.

"Hagrid retired years ago, he moved to France. I'm the groundskeeper now," Gobber said, before casting a charm that lit up a muddy path. The group hobbled along for a few minutes until they reached the front gates of the castle. Gobber waved his wand, and the gate opened. They gladly ran inside, slipping and sliding on the tiles. They barely had time to appreciate the enormous hall with its marble stairs before a familiar voice spoke up.

"Ah, you're here. Welcome, first-years, to Hogwarts!" a tall woman with grey hair said. Hiccup recognized her from one of his dad's ministry parties.

"I am Professor McGonagall, Headmistress of Hogwarts and Transfiguration teacher," she continued as the kids gathered around the enormous marble stairs she was standing on. Once they were all lined up she talked a bit about how houses worked, and that they should obey the rules. Hiccup's mind wandered, and with it his eyes. Next to him was Hiro, the boy from the wand shop, who looked as bored as him. Next to Hiro was a bald boy with arrow-shaped tattoos on his head and arms. Despite his strange appearance he looked giddy and excited. And at the far end he saw Astrid. She suddenly noticed him staring and frowned, and he quickly dropped his gaze.

"Now, let us enter the Great Hall so you can be Sorted!" McGonagall finished her speech, before passing through the line of first-years to a large door to their right.

Although he had heard stories and read books about this hall, he still gasped at the sight of it. The ceiling reflected the storm clouds outside, though no rain fell on the floating candles and tables filled with precious silverware. Hundreds of students dressed in similar black robes sat along the 4 tables, and they all looked at him and the other first-years entering. At the far end was the staff table on the raised platform. He could see Gobber near the center of it, giving him a quick wave with his prosthetic hand. He tried to smile back, though it was hard when his stomach churned at the sight of the tattered old hat sitting on a tiny old chair.

The blind girl was the only one not gasping at the amazing room. Instead she just kept walking forward alongside McGonagall, leading the other first-years towards the Sorting Hat.

Eventually they were all crowded near the chair with the hat, and it began to sing. Some of the Muggleborns gasped and looked fearful at first, but the hat quickly reassured them as it explained its purpose and the characteristics of the four houses.

"Alright, when I call your name, step forward, sit on the chair, and I'll put the hat on you. It will then sort you into your House. Firstly… Avatar, Aang!" McGonagall said, lifting the hat with one hand, a scroll in her other. The bald boy with tattoos he noticed earlier stepped forward with light steps and sat down, and McGonagall lowered the hat over the large blue arrow on his forehead.

"HUFFLEPUFF!" it shouted barely a second later. The boy jumped up, higher than Hiccup knew someone could jump, and ran over to the table that had exploded with applause.

"Beifong, Toph!" The blind girl stepped forward, somehow noticing the small step between them and the chair, and sitting down without help. Hiccup wondered how she did that.

The hat was quiet for a minute as Toph grimaced, before eventually announcing "GRYFFINDOR!"

Butterfly, Star!"

"That's me, that's me! Hi, Mr. Hat! Ooh, ooh, are you going to look into my mind? That's soooo cool!" a girl with heart-shaped cheek marks and blonde hair past her knees screamed as she ran forward, knocking over several first-years with surprising strength. She had an enormous grin as the Hat was placed over her head, hiding her wide eyes from the room.

For a second the grin lowered, before returning full-force. She nodded wildly, making McGonagall reach out her hand to steady the hat.

"GRYFFINDOR!" it suddenly boomed. The table next to them applauded loudly as the girl took off the hat and ran to her new house.

The sorting went on like that for a while, and Hiccup had trouble keeping track of all the names. There was a small commotion at the Ravenclaw table when Pidge Gunderson was called forward and sorted there, but it was quickly shushed.

Hiccup didn't recognize any of the kids that were sorted until "Hamada, Hiro" was sorted into Ravenclaw. Hiccup frowned at that. Wasn't he supposed to be before Hamada, since he's a Haddock? He was about to raise his hand when "Hofferson, Astrid" was announced, and at the sight of the fierce blonde walking forward with resolute steps he forgot what he was thinking about.

The hat was quiet for a very long time, at least five minutes, during which Astrid balled her hands into tighter and tighter fists. Even with her eyes hidden by the hat's brim she was clearly angry.

'GRYFFINDOR!" the hat eventually shouted, and she didn't even wait for McGonagall to lift the hat. Astrid jumped to her feet and tossed it to the chair, before stomping to the applauding table.

Hiccup's musings on what Astrid could be angry about were interrupted by McGonagall scraping her throat and announcing the next name.

"Horrendous, Hiccup!"

The tension that had filled the room at Astrid's anger snapped in the form of collective laughter.

"That's his actual name?"

"Don't know what's worse, the first or last name!"

"Wow, I feel sorry for the house that gets that one!"

"What were his parents thinking?"

Hiccup could feel his cheeks heat up in shame as he slowly stepped forward.

"That's not my last name! It's Haddock! Horrendous is my middle name!" he shouted, trying to be heard over the laughter which only increased at his words.

McGonagall narrowed her eyes as she checked her scroll again.

"You are- SILENCE!" The one word instantly stopped all the laughter in the hall. "You are listed as Horrendous in our records-" Snickers and soft laughs again echoed through the room, though they quickly stopped when she glared.

"We'll figure this out later. Either way, Mr. Hiccup, step forward and be Sorted."

He slowly nodded, feeling the stare of every person in the room on him, and sat down on the chair. Then the hat slid over his eyes, and it was suddenly completely silent.

...Until a raspy voice whispered in his ear.

"Who do we have here? Mistaken identity? Someone messing with the records? Well, let me tell you, you do belong here at Hogwarts, even if your wand doesn't work and someone got confused about your name. But where to put you?"

Hiccup jerked away from the voice and opened his mouth to ask how the hat knew all of this, but before he could even draw a breath the voice whispered in his other ear.

"Don't bother talking out loud, this is all in your head. No need for anyone else to hear this. Now, where oh where shall you go? A kind heart, loyal and forgiving. Not too lazy either. You'd make a decent Hufflepuff. But on the other hand, what a brain! Eager to learn, and I can see a spark of genius in you. You could have new perspectives. Maybe Ravenclaw?"

Hiccup's thoughts raced as he awaited the hat's verdict. A sweatdrop slid over his forehead. The presence gave him a headache.

"You're obviously not a Slytherin, you don't have a deceitful or ambitious bone in your body. Brave though, even if you don't know it yet. A good sense of right and wrong, and deep inside there's fighting spirit. What glorious cause would bring that out? You could be a great hero, you know, and Gryffindor would lead you to glory. All the kids these days want to be in the house of the _amazing _Harry Potter and his friends, but _you _could truly follow their path," it said, and Hiccup squeezed his eyes shut.

He was about to agree. Gryffindor was the house of the heroes, the good guys, the house that would please his father, the house the girl who made him feel all funny and light went to.

But then he remembered three Gryffindors on the back of a dragon. Three Gryffindors who everyone called heroes. Gryffindors who let a dragon run amok and kill his mother.

If that was heroism, Hiccup didn't think he wanted it.

"Oh, what's this? Now _this _is interesting. You might be the first kid I've seen in 7 years who doesn't worship those three. The complete opposite of that previous… never mind that, I'm not supposed to talk about other Sortings. Anyway, this is an interesting form of bravery in itself! But in your case, I think you'd better go to… RAVENCLAW!"

The hat was pulled from Hiccup's head, and the sounds of the Great Hall returned. There was muted clapping from the Ravenclaw table, not nearly as much as for the other students, while the other tables looked relieved. He awkwardly walked to the Ravenclaws, stumbling on the small step, though he managed to avoid falling on his face. He quickly sat down next to Hiro as McGonagall called forth "Jorgenson, Scott" and attention diverted away from him. A girl with round glasses and short hair reached out her hand across the table to him.

"Hey there. I'm Pidge Gunderson. Well, my brother here would say I'm Katie Holt, but that's not what the official records say now, do they Matt?" she said, pointing to a boy several years older, with similar hair and glasses who was sitting next to her. Hiccup awkwardly took her hand and shook it.

"How did you even hack the records here to change your name?! They're all in parchment! It's not like they have computers or internet!" Matt shouted, though he silenced himself when the hat proclaimed "SLYTHERIN" and "Katolis, Callum" was called forward.

"Oh, I have my ways. Still, you owe me 50 quid," Pidge (or was it Katie?) said, snickering. Hiccup wasn't sure how to respond to the bickering siblings.

"Fine, but I still don't understand why you did it. This will come back to bite you eventually," Matt said, rolling his eyes and digging in his pockets, pulling out a few bills of muggle money.

"Let me guess how you did it… You intercepted the communications between the ministry and Hogwarts, probably via Floo," Hiro said, and Pidge chuckled before nodding.

"Yup. Just had to figure out a charm to modify the ink inside the envelope."

"Oh man, I can see you two are already becoming partners in crime. What did I tell you, Tadashi? Hopeless. Our siblings are supervillains in the making!" Matt called out to a tall boy several seats down. He started to reply when the hat shouted "RAVENCLAW" and a boy with messy brown hair and a thick book on a belt slung around his shoulder walked over to sit next to Pidge.

"Hi, I'm Callum. Muggleborn, but my dad is high in muggle government so he already knew about magic," the boy introduced himself. Pidge quickly introduced herself, explaining that she and Matt were Muggleborn as well.

"I'm half-blood. Muggle mother, wizard father. They both died when I was 3," Hiro said, and Hiccup turned to look at him. Murdered by Death Eaters?

Hiro must have noticed the question in his eyes. "No, nothing to do with the war. Broom-flying accident. Dumb stuff like that still happens during wartime," he said lightly, though something in his face fell anyway. Down the table Tadashi frowned.

"My mom died during the war too," Hiccup said, looking down.

"May I ask what happened?" Matt asked softly. Hiccup sighed.

"A dragon killed her," he simply said, not in the mood to explain the role of Harry Potter in it.

"I'm sorry," Callum said, just as the hat announced another Ravenclaw. Hiccup moved to clap loudly, grateful for the distraction. A boy with black hair with faint blue streaks sat down next to Hiccup.

"Hey there, I'm Varian! I'm from a little village in Wales called Old Corona. Muggleborn, hoping to figure out how magic fits into physics and chemistry!" he said, lifting a hand covered by a huge lab glove to shake Pidge's hand.

Hiro, Pidge, and Varian immediately started an animated discussion of muggle science, and Hiccup couldn't help but feel left out somehow. He caught Callum's gaze, and they shared a chuckle at their housemates.

"I'm more an artist than a scientist myself," Callum said, and Hiccup nodded, before turning to watch the rest of the sorting. Not many kids were left. He noticed Katara, the girl from the boat who could direct the rain, waiting next to… someone with purple hair and pointed ears. Hiccup wasn't really sure if the person was a boy or a girl.

"Vaarsuvius!" McGonagall called, and they stepped forward.

"Finally. You strange cranial accessory, let us purvey the different possibilities of social company I shall have to compete with in my quest for Ultimate Arcane Power!" they said loudly before putting the hat on.

"That one sure looks like to hear his own voice," Callum chuckled, and Hiccup had to agree.

"RAVENCLAW!"

Hiccup wasn't surprised after Vaarsuvius' declaration, and joined the rest of his house in applause.

Welcome, fellow wizards and other arcane casters! My name is Vaarsuvius, from the ancient village of Ivyleaf on the Western Continent! Former apprentice of Aarindarius, who also moved here to Albion to teach the noble art of Arithmancy!" they said as they sat down next to Callum.

"If it's okay, I'll just call you 'V'," Pidge said. Vaarsuvius simply shrugged at that.

"So you're from America? Me and my brother are as well, but we moved here because my aunt could set up a cafe in Hogsmeade," Hiro said as Katara was sorted into Gryffindor. Realizing the Sorting was over, all conversations ended.

An old grumpy looking man took the chair and hat away, and McGonagall moved to the center where it had stood.

"Welcome, students, to another year at Hogwarts! The usual rules still apply, but I must announce an extra rule coming from the Ministry of Magic via our groundskeeper and professor for Defense Against the Dark Arts, Gobber Belch: Due to the increased threat coming from the so-called _Red Death_ dragon, students are no longer permitted to walk the grounds after dark. I must remind everyone that the Forbidden Forest is forbidden because of its many dangers, dangers which have increased in recent years. Do not be foolish and risk your life in there. There's plenty of excitement in the castle itself," McGonagall spoke. There was some nervous chuckling here and there, but overall people seemed very uncomfortable with this warning. Was this that unusual?

As far as Hiccup knew, his father had announced more warnings and declarations and rules about the Red Death every year since its first appearance 5 years ago. Maybe they hadn't reached Hogwarts until now.

"But let us not be saddened by such dark thoughts on such a happy evening. A great feast has been prepared, so let us enjoy it!" With those words, piles of food appeared on the golden plates, and the scientists finally stopped their discussion on perpetual motion in order to eat.

A flash of light flickered on the walls, and Hiccup looked up to see lightning strike across the enchanted ceiling. For a fraction of a second he thought he could see the shadow of a dragon inside a cloud, but then it was gone, and he shook his head and forced himself to focus on eating mashed potatoes and deciphering Vaarsuvius' long-winded speeches.

* * *

"This portrait is the entrance to Gryffindor Tower. We have a password, which currently is 'Primum non nocere'. Please do not share this password with anyone from another house. While we encourage friendships between houses, you should be meeting in shared spaces like the library, the grounds, the great hall, or unused classrooms. There are some plans for a 'common common room', but it will likely take a while for that to happen," a prefect explained to Astrid and the other first-year Gryffindors.

Astrid didn't feel the need to be friends with other houses for now. Of the three girls she met on the train, two had joined her in Gryffindor, and it wasn't like she had bonded much with Pidge.

The portrait of the fat lady swung open, revealing a chamber filled with poofy armchairs, thick rugs, and wooden tables.

"Ugh, carpeting. I prefer solid wooden or stone floors, they're much less fuzzy to see through," Toph, the blind girl, said, and Astrid noticed for the first time she was barefoot.

"Up here are the dorms. Left for the boys, right for the girls. No mingling. You'll keep the same dorm for the 7 years you are here. You got lucky, you get the closest ones, so you don't have to climb another six flights of stairs. These are also the dorms Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Hermione Granger, Neville Longbottom and the other heroes of the Battle of Hogwarts used during their time here, so you can feel a bit closer to their glory, I suppose. Your belongings have already been delivered to your dorms. Owls are in the Owlery, you can visit them after class. Breakfast is between 8 and 9 AM. It is your own responsibility to be on time, but perhaps you can work out a system with your roommates to wake up and go down together," the prefect said, gesturing at two open doors through which she could see steep stairs.

"I expect all of you to bring glory to yourselves and to Gryffindor. This means doing well in class, going the extra mile for more points, but also by helping students who are struggling, whether they are in this house or not. True chivalry doesn't look at someone's colors. That is all for now. I advise you to go to sleep quickly, as you have a long day ahead tomorrow. Any questions?"

At the reminder of sleep Astrid yawned. She hadn't had much sleep last night, too excited to go here, and she desperately wanted to catch up.

However, Rayla didn't seem to agree.

"I heard there's a dueling club or something? How can we join?" she asked.

"There is, though it's rare that it accepts first-years. You'll have to talk to Professor Flitwick, he runs it. If he's impressed with your performance in his Charms class, he might let you join. Once in, you get to compete with your fellow duelists for the highest rank. If you want to become an auror a good duelist rank helps you a lot," the prefect explained, and Astrid woke up at that.

If she wanted to be good at dueling she needed to be rested, however. So she led the way up the girl's stairs and into the first room labeled "First-years". In there she easily found her suitcase on the bed closest to the window, and laid down. She was tempted to fall asleep like that, but she forced herself to unpack her pajamas and toothbrush as the other girls walked in.

"Ooh, ooh, this looks nice! Can I have this bed, can I? Do you think I can make an extra closet?" Star Butterfly was as loud and energetic as she had been the entire evening.

"I don't think we're allowed to modify anything, Star. But you can take that bed. Toph, how about you take this one near the door, that way you don't have to walk through our stuff when you get up," Katara said, making Toph scoff.

"I can handle myself, Sugar Queen," she muttered, but still took the suggested bed. The two had gotten off to a bad start when Katara offered to help her eat and Toph responded by magically shifting the table to make food fly into her face.

"Can you two stop bickering so we can sleep?" Merida groaned.

"Fine," Toph said, and Astrid figured it was a good thing the blind girl couldn't see Katara roll her eyes.

"How do we wake up on time tomorrow?" Rayla asked, digging through her own bags.

"I can set an alarm with my wand!" Star said, showing off her strange wand. She tapped it, and with a cloud of pink smoke the round top part suddenly had a clock face.

"What kind of wand even is that?" Merida asked, lifting her own simple wooden one.

"It's the Butterfly wand! Has been in my family foreeeeveeeeeer!" Star said, dragging out the last word as she fiddled with the clock.

After that they prepared for bed mostly in silence, taking turns in the bathroom before crawling under the covers. Despite the summer heat, it was quite cool. Astrid wondered if it was because they were so high up, or if the temperature was controlled by magic.

Despite her heavy eyes, Astrid couldn't fall asleep, even though the curtains on her bed muffled Star's and Toph's snores. She had hoped she could sleep easier here. Back in her little room at Uncle Finn's she never slept well. Every time she'd open her eyes in the dark room, it was like that night over seven years ago, when Aunt Erika woke her to tell her Daddy and Celia were dead.

But this place was different. She shouldn't still be bothered by those childish memories! Still, her annoyance didn't help her fall asleep, and after an hour of staring at the red curtains she finally sat up and grabbed her suitcase, searching for some little notebooks.

Her sister's diaries. Celia started a new one every year, leaving the old ones at their house, where Astrid found them when they moved everything to Uncle Finn's house. As always when she opened them, Astrid wondered if her sister would have been okay with her reading them, but she could never resist. Apart from her letters this was all she had left of her. Maybe if she reread how her brave sister handled her first night at Hogwarts she could handle it as well.

So she found the diary from Celia's first year, and opened it to the first page.

_September 1st_

_Dear Diary, I'm at Hogwarts! It's incredible here. It's so big! I got sorted into Gryffindor, Harry Potter's house! He wasn't at the table, though. Apparently he got really sick from the dementors on the train! _

_Oh right, I forgot to tell you, the train was stopped by dementors looking for Sirius Black! It was so scary, they made me feel all cold and empty. Jackie, who got sorted into Gryffindor with me, had to cry. Still, the feast made me feel much better, there was so much food! _

_I got to meet all my new housemates too! There's Jackie, and Chang, and some other girl whose name I forgot, and Dennis. Dennis' brother is also in Gryffindor. They're both Muggleborns. They're different than I expected. I always thought they'd be much dumber! But they were funny, and I can't wait for my classes tomorrow! I should go to sleep now, I think Jackie is getting annoyed at my writing at night._

The entry reminded Astrid that she had it easy compared to her sister. She didn't have to deal with Dementors! With that thought she finally fell asleep, still holding the diary.


	3. Magical Thinking

**Hey everyone! Sorry this is a day late. Busy weekend! **

**I received a few questions about the confusion with Hiccup's name from last chapter, and I wanted to clear it up. When Pidge intercepted the official name list to change her own name (from Katie Holt to Pidge Gunderson), she accidentally switched Hiccup's names as well. There's no big secret plot hiding behind it. Honestly the main reason I wrote it was because I wanted to have Hiccup and Astrid be adjacent alphabetically, but Pidge and Hiro were between them. That's all there is to it. **

**I hope you enjoy the chapter!**

* * *

Hiccup was picking at a bacon sandwich, too nervous about his first day of classes to be hungry, when Professor Flitwick gave him his schedule.

"You'll have my class first, together with the Gryffindors. Don't worry, I'm sure you'll all do great!" the tiny man said, giving the next sheet to Vaarsuvius.

"I have studied the arcane for uncountable years, I am sure your simplistic class of cantrips will not challenge me!" the purple-haired mage exclaimed, before taking another bite of vegetable salad. Hiccup wondered if V was a vegetarian.

"Professor, I was wondering why my computer doesn't work here at Hogwarts. I get that we don't have electrical sockets, but I have a charger that I can charge with movement, so that's not the issue-" Pidge started, holding up a plastic box.

"It's the magic all around us. Electronics and magic don't mix," Flitwick said, handing out schedules to the other first-years before moving down the rest of the table.

"But why not?" Pidge shouted, but Flitwick was already busy answering more questions about the schedule.

"Leave it until his class, at least. Though I don't think even he knows. Never got a straight answer about it, and I've asked for 4 years. Honestly I don't think any of these wizards understand how magic works," Matt Holt said, ruffling Pidge's unkempt hair.

"Then I'll figure it out myself. Hey, Hiro, you're with me? I'm not gonna live here for 7 years without a working computer!" she called out to the tired-looking boy who was just sitting down. His older brother Tadashi sat down beside him, looking significantly better.

"I keep telling you, Tadashi, these two are a force of nature," Matt told him, shaking his head.

"Where's Varian? He had good ideas last night, even if he's more of a chemist than a physicist!" Pidge shouted, looking up and down the table.

"He already went to class. As should you, it starts in five minutes!" Matt said, pointing at his watch, and they jumped up in alarm.

"Curse my insensitivity to the passage of time!" Vaarsuvius shouted, jumping up and running out. Hiccup quickly followed.

They made it into the classroom just as the bell rang, after a sprint up four flights of stairs that left them all huffing and puffing. Professor Flitwick was already there, looking not at all like he had been on the other side of the castle less than ten minutes ago.

"Ah, our new Ravenclaws have actually decided to join us. Maybe set an alarm tomorrow like the Gryffindors did?" Flitwick chuckled.

"Maybe if my computer worked I could actually set an alarm…" Pidge muttered as she sat down beside Hiccup. Noticing the Gryffindors already had their books out he quickly dug in his bag for the heavy _Standard Book of Spells, Part 1_.

"Alright class, I'm sure you're eager to start learning magic, but let's do attendance first. Toph Beifong?"

"I'm here," the blind girl Hiccup had noticed before said in a bored tone. She was the only one with no book.

"Star Butterfly?"

"I'm here, I'm here! Look, I can already do charms!" Star shouted, jumping up and pulling out her strange wand. Flitwick quickly raised his hands in a calming gesture.

"I admire your enthusiasm, but let's take things one at a time. Now, Merida Dunbroch?"

Attendance went with no incidents, except for chuckling when Flitwick didn't use a last name for Hiccup. It was clear that everyone remembered him as 'Horrendous Hiccup'.

"Good, everyone is here, and I think I already know most of your names. Now, let's do some magic! We're going to start with what some wizards think is the most boring spell, but I personally think it's one of the purest displays of magic. It's the light spell, _Lumos_. Lumos requires no actual wand movement, only an incantation and concentration."

"Spells are much more than movement and incantation. Charms require _intent_, you need to know what it is you want, and have the _will _to impose that on the world. In this case, you simply need to wish for light. Let this simple demand fill your mind, and when you are fully concentrating on it, say _Lumos_," Flitwick said, waving his own wand to close the curtains, darkening the room.

Hiccup tried his best to picture a light on the tip of his wand, before saying the incantation. A spark of painful heat ran through his fingertips, but no light appeared.

"Oh, very impressive! Look, everyone, Ms. Hofferson got it on her first try! Five points for Gryffindor!" Flitwick shouted, making him look up from his wand to see Astrid's wand glowing faintly.

"How am I even supposed to know if I got it? Or picture light in the first place? I have no idea what it'd look like," Toph asked as Astrid cast the spell again, this time creating a much brighter light. Hiccup tried again as well, but his wand remained stubbornly dark.

Over the next ten minutes more and more students managed to cast the spell, and before long he was the only one aside from Toph who was still sitting in the dark.

Next to him Hiro and Pidge were analyzing the light and heat coming from Varian's wand, apparently trying to figure out how it fit in muggle science, and Hiccup was just glad they weren't paying attention to his repeated chanting. He remembered the thousands of pointless swings in all those wand shops, and wondered if this was how it was gonna go forever.

While trying for his wand he had thought that at Hogwarts the magic would just flow, but instead he felt the same frustration, the same scorching itch in his nerves that wouldn't reach beyond his fingertips.

"Alright, looks like all of you managed to- Oh, except for Mr. Hiccup, it seems?" Flitwick said, finally stepping away from Toph's desk. Hiccup instantly felt his cheeks heat up in shame when everyone turned to look at his useless wand.

"I'm trying! It just doesn't do anything!" he said, before chanting Lumos a few more times for good measure. With each chant there was more chuckling and whispering in the room, and he squeezed his eyes shut.

"It's okay, just relax. Stress only makes it harder to do magic," Flitwick said, and he shook his head wildly. How was he supposed to relax when he couldn't do magic? What would his father say?

More liquid fire raced down his arm to his fingers, where it concentrated into burning pain. He couldn't even picture light anymore. All he could think of was the fire under his skin.

"Is he even a wizard? Are we sure he's not a squib?" a student whispered, and suddenly all the fire inside him swelled up and crashed through his fingertips. A light, brighter than any of the other students', shone at the tip of the wand for a fraction of a second before collapsing into a shockwave that shook the classroom. Hiccup yelped, dropping the wand and shielding his face with his hands. Around him people screamed.

"Well, Mr. Hiccup, that was quite an impressive display of an explosion spell, but we weren't looking for that. I'll let it slip for now, but in the future destroying school property will mean extra homework or loss of points," Flitwick slowly said as Hiccup caught his breath and lowered his hands. The professor gestured at him, making him look down. His desk had collapsed, the desktop reduced to a cratered piece of firewood lying on his knees. He hadn't even felt it fall. A wave of Flitwick's wand and the desk repaired itself.

"Great job blowing us up, Horrendous," Pidge muttered next to him.

"I… I'm sorry," he said, not understanding what had just happened.

"Don't be sorry. Just be more careful next time. Now, let us move on to what most of you will find boring, but is nevertheless crucial: the theory of how charms like these work. We create light with our willpower and an incantation, but what are the limits of this?" Flitwick said, turning to the blackboard and grabbing a piece of chalk.

Hiccup tried to focus on the lecture, grabbing parchment and ink. His hands still tingled and burned, making him drop his quill. But when he looked closer, no marks or wounds were visible.

* * *

As she walked out Transfiguration class to go to lunch Astrid wasn't sure what to think of her first day so far. Casting the spells had been easy, almost laughably so. But then Flitwick had talked about all this theory she didn't understand at all, about willpower and flow of energy, and it only made it harder for her to concentrate on the magic.

Who needs to understand _how _something works when it just _does_?

Well, apparently professors like Flitwick and McGonagall. Flitwick had picked up on her difficulty following the theory, and when she asked him about the duelling club alongside Rayla, Merida and Toph, he had said a true duelist needs to understands all aspects of magic. He'd invite new duelists around Halloween, so she had to improve by then. But surely that wouldn't be too hard. She had her books, and the library. If there was anything Uncle Finn had always taught her it was to never give up.

As they entered the Great Hall for lunch she noticed the rich kid again. Horrendous Hiccup. She recognized the name somewhere. Maybe Uncle Finn had mentioned it. With robes like that his parents must be loaded, and with that money came influence.

"Merida? Do you know the Horrendous name?" she asked as she grabbed some chicken nuggets.

"Horrendous? You mean Haddock over there? His dad's the head of the Department of Magical Creatures. One of the biggest departments in the Ministry. He fought alongside my dad in the Order during the war, but apparently after the Battle he turned away from the entire cause. Didn't care anymore. All he wants to do is slay dragons, and he'll block anything until he gets his way on that. House elf rights, werewolf rights, more transparency at Gringotts, all the stuff the Order of the Phoenix wanted to implement. No idea why, even my dad doesn't know. The Haddocks are also filthy stinking rich, and not afraid to bribe half the Ministry with it," the Scot said. Astrid frowned again at his robes. Even though everyone was supposed to have the same black uniforms, his still had the little gilded edges, the silk sleeves and the rune patterns that her family could never afford.

But apparently all the money in the world still can't buy magical ability. Astrid noticed Hiccup sitting alone, an empty seat or two between him and the other first year Ravenclaws. She couldn't blame them. Something about him made her nervous.

Just then the owls came in to bring the mail. Astrid easily spotted her yellow owl, Stormfly, and held out her arm so she'd land there instead of on her plate. Next to her another owl dropped off a newspaper for Merida. The girl opened it as Astrid untied an envelope from Stormfly's paw.

A letter from Aunt Erika. Of course she wouldn't even wait a day before writing. But before she could open it, Merida cried out.

"It struck again! Right next to our estate! My parents are not going to be happy with this!" Astrid looked over to see Merida point out a huge article on page 2.

RED DEATH STRIKES DUNBROCH VILLAGE, the headline said, right above a large moving picture of a fireball engulfing a barn.

A quick read through the article showed there were several wounded with burns. The dragon had struck food supplies, taking many pieces of livestock. But while Merida and Rayla started talking about the damage to the village they were from, Astrid noticed another headline on the next page. It was much smaller, but it still sent chills down her spine.

NEO-DEATH EATER INFILTRATES MINISTRY OF MAGIC

The short article was about an attempted break-in at the Ministry. Dark magic had been used, and the burglar got away without managing to steal anything.

As Astrid compared the two articles, she couldn't help but feel more disturbed by the second one. But why didn't anyone else agree? Everyone was talking about the Red Death, despite the fact that it was a mindless beast. Surely the Death Eaters with their evil plans were way more sinister.

And that's why she had to learn duelling as soon as possible. If those bastards came for her they wouldn't hesitate to kill. She couldn't either. Ignoring her troubled master, Stormfly breathed fire on chicken nugget on her plate and snatched it up.

"Good girl. You're with me, right? The others might think we're small and weak, but we are strong," Astrid whispered to the strange owl, who chirped before chewing more chicken.

* * *

A chime woke Hiccup from a dream he couldn't remember, and he groaned. Around him the other Ravenclaws did as well. He sat up to see Hiro turn off the mechanical clock he and Pidge had cobbled together from spare parts. They were still trying to make an electronic clock, but apparently magic was too hard to figure out in a week.

"Hey Mochi, go wake up Pidge. She'll have food for you," Hiro told his cat, who happily walked out and ran down the stairs.

"So, Flying class today, right? Looking forward to it?" Hiccup asked, grabbing some airy robes to change into. It was the first Saturday since they arrived at Hogwarts, and he was eager to do something he was actually good at rather than fail more at spellcasting.

"I guess," Hiro simply said, before going into the bathroom to shower.

"This endeavor using levitating magical broomsticks should be trivial, even for you. Perhaps in this class you won't cost us House points," Vaarsuvius shouted from their bed, curtains still closed. Hiccup's smile dropped.

The dorm was quiet after that, Varian and Callum following the general icy mood and not talking to Hiccup as they freshened up.

Hiccup was the first to descend the stairs into the common room, where the few higher-year students who were up this early on a Saturday looked at him coldly. He left the room as quickly as he could, focusing on the flying lesson ahead. V was right, surely he couldn't lose points here!

As he walked downstairs to the Great Hall for breakfast he passed the giant hourglasses showing the house points. There weren't that many points for any house yet, but Ravenclaw was third, only barely ahead of Hufflepuff. As far as first-years went, Hiccup was dragging Ravenclaw down hard. He hadn't managed any controlled magic so far. At best, he simply got no points while the other students got a few each. But more often than not he'd accidentally blow something up and lose a lot of points.

Gryffindor was ahead by more than 200 points already. Hiccup wondered how much that was from the fact that it was simply the largest house, with nearly as many students as the other three houses combined, and how much was from the great spellcasting by Astrid and the other new lions.

He ate breakfast by himself as usual. The scientist group sat together with an empty seat between them and him. Callum was getting along with Rayla, one of the Gryffindor girls, so he tended to sit with his back to his fellow Ravenclaws while eating with her, while Vaarsuvius often didn't eat breakfast at all.

The baked beans sat heavily in Hiccup's stomach when he walked down to the Quidditch pitch for the flying lesson. As he walked he passed Aang, surrounded by a big group of other students. The bald boy shouted a hello to Hiccup, and he waved back, trying not to notice the dirty looks from the others. At least Aang didn't care about his spellcasting.

Soon enough they were all lined up in front of Madam Hooch, old broomsticks between them. Hiccup ended up at the end of the line, next to Astrid. She glanced at him, before frowning and looking away. It didn't stop heat from coming to his cheeks and butterflies from fluttering in his stomach.

"Welcome, students, to your first flying lesson! Although you won't be allowed to try out for Quidditch teams until next year, flying and other physical activity is still an important part of your education here. Doing magic is not just about willpower or intelligence, it is also about physical strength. 'A healthy mind in a healthy body' the Muggles say, and for once I agree with them. Now, we're going to start things off nice and easy. No fooling around, no crazy tricks!" Hooch said clearly, glaring at the students with her piercing yellow eyes. It was clear she was not someone to mess around with.

"To master flight, you must first master your broom. Hold your right hand over the broom to your right, and say 'Up' clearly. Command the broom to obey you," she continued, showing the movement with her own, much nicer, broom. A single word and the broomstick flew straight up into her hand.

Hiccup frowned. He had never been taught this step. He had always just picked up his broomstick the regular way.

Before he could voice that however, Aang spoke up.

"Mrs. Hooch? I was wondering if I could fly with my glider instead?" As he spoke, he manipulated the staff he always carried, making wings pop out.

"While I have great respect for the ways of the Tibetan Air Nomads, and feel like they should not be forgotten, here at Hogwarts we fly on broomsticks, at least during the flying lessons. You are more than welcome to fly your glider in your free time, and I would love to discuss it in more detail with you after class. But for now, please use the broomstick. I'm sure someone with your expertise in air magic should have no problems with it," Hooch said, gesturing at Aang's tattoos. Aang nodded enthusiastically, not at all deterred. Instead he just put his glider against the wall and joined the others in holding a hand above a broom.

"Up" they all said. Astrid's broom instantly flew up, and she grasped it firmly. Hiccup was disappointed but not surprised when his own broom remained stubbornly on the ground. By now the tinge of heat racing down his arm was familiar. Surely that feeling was magic, but why did it not do what he wanted?

Thankfully he wasn't the only one having trouble. Toph, who got an exemption from flying due to her blindness, was leaning on the wooden boundary of the pitch, smirking in the direction of still brooms and the students yelling at them.

As Hiccup told his broom to get off the ground some more he looked around, involuntarily smiling at how proud Astrid looked with her broom in her hand. Her hair was shining gold in the morning sun, and although it covered one eye it just made the other's blue more piercing.

"Mr. Haddock! How about you stop staring at your classmates and focus on your broom!" Madam Hooch's booming voice made him remember where he was. He looked back down at the broom, doing his best to ignore the snickering as another 'Up!' was refused by the stupid piece of wood.

"I've always just grabbed it with my hands, Professor," he eventually said when it was clear the broom wasn't moving on its own.

"Very well, you do that today so we can move on," she said, turning the class' attention back to her.

Over the next few minutes Hooch demonstrated how to mount and take off. Hiccup knew this already, and when he kicked off the ground he was glad the broom didn't decide to drop him.

"Oh, very good, Mr. Haddock! And you too, Mr. Avatar! 10 points to Ravenclaw and Hufflepuff!" Hiccup looked down in surprise to see only himself and Aang flying stable. Astrid looked very wobbly on her broom, two feet above the ground. But then she steadied herself and flew up as well, quickly picking it up.

"Well done, Ms. Hofferson! 5 points to Gryffindor! But try to hold the broom a little looser. Choking it only makes it harder to fly. Look at how Hiccup does it," Hooch said, and Hiccup nearly fell off his broom when Astrid's eyes, along with the rest of the class', turned to him. She didn't look happy, and her grip only became tighter until her knuckles turned white with the force.

"Huh, he's not horrendous at flying," a Slytherin said as Hiccup tried to stay relaxed and keep flying in a steady circle.

"Of course, the broom is doing all the work," someone else snickered. His grip tightened.

"Madam Hooch? Where do the brooms get the energy from to move? Surely it can't come from nothing," Varian asked, hovering in place a few feet above the ground.

"Flying enchantment. Unlike wands, a broom doesn't channel a wizard's magic, it creates its own based only on the wizard's intent and movement. A lot of magical items do this. A portkey is a good example," she said curtly, leaving Varian and his friends looking more confused than before.

Hiccup wasn't listening anymore. Confident the broom wouldn't stop working, he flew faster and higher, circling around the stands. For a minute he pretended the stands were full of people cheering him, the best Quidditch player in a century. And there, in the best seat, was his father, looking proud and not angry at all for failing spellcasting.

It took Madam Hooch shouting at him to get down for him to remember where he was, but the smile remained for a while, even as he landed among classmates who didn't hide their disdain for him.

* * *

Alright, so we're in agreement? Make sure Mr. Hamada keeps that anti-authority streak of his focused on researching this muggle tech. Next up, Astrid Hofferson," Professor McGonagall said, tapping the projector on the meeting table with her wand. The picture it was projecting, of a smirking Hiro Hamada, was replaced with a serious-looking Astrid. She looked at the camera with the same distrust and scrutiny she seemed to use for everyone around her.

In the month he had her in his class, Neville Longbottom didn't think he'd actually seen her smile even once.

"Her grades so far are decent, though with a big gap between theory and practice. She's a natural at casting charms, but she barely passed my first written test," Flitwick said, grabbing a sheet of parchment from his notes.

"I'm noticing the same thing. She's one of the best spellcasters I've ever seen, extremely determined to fight the Dark Arts, but she's having a hard time with the theory," Gobber said. Neville frowned.

"She's doing well in Herbology. I don't think she likes the class much, but she works hard," he said, remembering her following instructions to the letter without complaint. In fact, she didn't say much in general.

"Astrid has been struggling in Potions. She doesn't quite have the patience for it, I fear, or a head for numbers and amounts, Professor Slughorn added, taking a sip from his water. "Definitely didn't get her brother's talent at Potions."

"This early on that means nothing. It took me years to understand Potions, though that was more because of the lecturer," Neville said, shivering involuntarily at the memory of Snape sneering at his concoctions.

"I agree with Professor Longbottom. Theory can be acquired later. But spellcasting talent like hers is rare. We should try to improve that further. Filius, have you considered having her joining the Duelling Club?" McGonagall asked. Neville blushed slightly. He didn't think he'd ever get used to McGonagall calling him Professor. Whenever he saw her he still felt like that scared little boy blowing himself up in her class. Not like a professor with classes of his own.

"Definitely. I can see her becoming number one quickly, though she'll have some tough competition from her classmates, notably Ms. Beifong. But that doesn't have to be bad. I've noticed they've formed a sort of rivalry already. They might both work even harder if they compete at duelling as well," Flitwick said.

"Alright then. No other concerns so far?" McGonagall asked, wand moving to the projector again.

"There is one thing, actually. She's quite… assertive in History of Magic. More than the others. Of course her family has suffered heavily in the war, but she seems to think that makes her an expert on it. It's not disruptive, but I can tell there's a lot of anger in that girl, and complaining I don't talk enough about Death Eaters is one of her outlets," Professor Blinky said. Neville liked this history professor a lot more than Binns, the ghost who had taught the course when he was in school. There were some rumors Blinky had troll blood, but if he had it didn't impact his intelligence.

"She's doing the same in Defense. Keeps asking about how to counter Death Eaters specifically," Gobber added.

"Well, she'll have to learn that the war is over and that there are no more Death Eaters. But I'm sure it's just a phase she'll grow out of," McGonagall said clearly. Neville wasn't so sure, but he could tell none of the older staff wanted to hear that. So he just nodded silently.

"So in conclusion, try to cultivate that spellcasting talent, and we'll see if she needs help with theory later. And try to gently nudge her away from this focus on the war. It's peacetime now, we need to build for the future instead of dwelling in the past," McGonagall said, before tapping the projector. Astrid's picture was replaced by a short boy with a shy smile.

"Hiccup… Horrendous Haddock? I honestly have no idea what is up with our name records, though I suspect our Pidge Gunderson, who the rest of the world knows as Katie Holt, had something to do with it. Either way, he's still listed as Horrendous on all the lists, and that's the order in which we'll discuss the students. I tried to have it fixed with the Ministry, but you know how long that takes," McGonagall sighed.

"He's almost the opposite of Astrid. Very clever. I think he's just as smart as those muggleborn scientist prodigies. Almost perfect scores on his written tests. But I have never seen him successfully cast a spell. Not even _Lumos_, and that's the easiest charm there is," Flitwick said, frowning at his notes.

"I hate to have to ask this, especially considering his… impressive lineage, but is the boy actually magical? Hogwarts is no place for squibs," Slughorn slowly asked.

"He… produces magic. That's the best I can describe it. If he gets frustrated, _if he just pushes hard enough_, he can make explosions or light or fire. Pure energy. Quite powerful actually. But he seems incapable of shaping it, of turning it into energy he can control," Flitwick explained, gesturing with his hands.

"Professor Longbottom? What do you think of his magic? You had trouble with spells in your early years, and you figured it out later. Do you think it's something similar for Hiccup?" McGonagall asked, making Neville jump a little.

"No, I don't think so. My problem was self-doubt and a lack of confidence. But Hiccup… I don't think he's insecure. He seems as baffled by the lack of magic as everyone else is. He works hard on it, I can tell he is really _trying_. But something beyond his control is blocking it. Maybe a medical problem? Has he had a check-up at St. Mungo's recently?" Neville slowly said, surprised his opinion was valued like this.

"There's no medical issues as far as we know. The only thing listed is a dust allergy, and I seriously doubt that has anything to do with being able to do magic!" McGonagall exclaimed, grabbing Hiccup's file.

"I'm sure he'll figure it out eventually. He's a good kid, and I don't see why we need to pressure him too much about it now. If we're willing to wait for Astrid to figure out theory, then we should also give him the chance to learn practice," Gobber said loudly. Neville nodded.

"I agree, more pressure and punishment would only make it worse," he added.

"Very well, then. We'll wait and see how his magic changes. That's his academic performance, how about socially? He seems a bit isolated in my class," McGonagall said, making a note in her file.

"That's probably because you called him Horrendous in front of the entire school," Gobber chuckled. McGonagall sighed.

"That was unfortunate, I agree, but in addition to that… we might be understanding of his lack of magic, but the other students aren't. Plus it's hard not to subtract points if he blows something up and puts everyone in danger." The other teachers nodded in agreement.

"Yes, I don't think he should get special treatment either. All students should be treated equally, including points awarded and attention from the teachers," Slughorn said, leading to Flitwick snorting loudly. The tiny professor quickly turned it into a cough, but Slughorn still glared at him.

Neville was barely able to suppress his own laugh, remembering Slughorn 'selecting' Harry and Draco for his exclusive club back when they were still in school.

"It's a shame, really. I think Hiccup could help the scientist trio a lot if they'd give him a chance. He's got a good heart, and a quick mind, even if he's a little more awkward than the others in showing it," Flitwick sighed.

"But that's not for us to decide. They have to figure that out by themselves. That's also part of learning at Hogwarts, right?" Slughorn said.

"That's true. I guess we'll see how it develops, and keep an eye on it, make sure it doesn't get too nasty. I don't want bullying in this school. Now let's move on to Mr. Jorgenson," McGonagall concluded, tapping the projector to bring up another students.

Though the conversation moved on, Neville's thoughts kept going back to Hiccup. In some ways Neville felt like he saw a younger version of himself, but other times he felt like he didn't know the boy at all. Above all, he couldn't help but feel like there was a lot more going on with him than meets the eye.


	4. Friendship Is Magic

**so... yeah, I know this is about 6 weeks after the last update. I had a really rough month, and I couldn't figure out this chapter either. Must have rewritten it 3 times until I was happy with it. I really hope you enjoy it too. Nanowrimo starts this week, and I'm determined to use it to work hard on this fic, so expect me it to get back to weekly updates! Anyway, if you liked the chapter or have some thoughts, please leave a comment, they really help me write!**

* * *

"So if we mix the two potions, the positive magic in the first will heal the negative energy in the other, creating a more neutral mixture with different properties. This is extremely hard to measure, however. No wizard has managed to figure out how to create a neutral potion consistently. Of course, Derokovich came close. She was a Hogwarts student back when I first lectured here, quite a brilliant one. Though that's to be expected when your parents are…" Hiccup zoned out when professor Slughorn went on another tangent about the famous wizards and witches he had taught.

Hiccup resisted a yawn as he looked away from the blackboard. He had understood what Professor Slughorn was talking about twenty minutes ago, and since then all the teacher had done was repeat the same simple concept in different ways.

Not everyone seemed to find it simple, however. He snuck a glance at Astrid, sitting a few tables away. She was listening intently, taking a lot of notes. But she was holding her quill with a grip so tight it turned her knuckles white under the ink stains, and her eyes were narrowed and bloodshot.

Hiccup wondered if she was getting enough sleep. Shaking her head, she began writing faster, drops of ink splattering on the table. He quickly looked away, not wanting to be caught staring. Desperate to focus on something else, he turned to his fellow Ravenclaws.

"This is just acidity. How have these wizards not figured that out yet? Acids and bases are the same thing, just opposites compared to water! But instead they think it's good and evil magic? Seriously?!" Varian muttered angrily, looking down at their potion. Hiro and him were the only ones able to make a perfectly balanced potion today, and Hiccup still didn't understand how. He considered asking, but they were still angry about him blowing up his cauldron and costing Ravenclaw 20 points earlier when he tried to conjure water.

"But Professor, you say water is purely neutral, and that salt changes the neutrality of the potion, but also that salt water is neutral? That doesn't make sense," Astrid asked, raising her ink-stained hand.

"No, that's not exactly what I said. How about another student tries to explain it? Mr. Haddock perhaps?" Slughorn said, turning all attention to him.

"Uhm, not all salts are the same? Some are positive, some are negative, but seasalt happens to be neutral?" Hiccup stuttered, looking down at his notes rather than the class.

"Very good! Five points to Ravenclaw for the explanation. I don't blame you at all for the question, Ms. Astrid. The idea of calling all kinds of different things 'salt' comes from Muggles, and it was obviously a terrible idea leading to such confusion every time I teach this topic," Slughorn said. In the corner of his eye, Hiccup could see Varian facepalm while groaning loudly.

The professor caught Varian's annoyance too, but before he could say anything, the bell rang.

"Alright, don't go just yet. Ms Hofferson, I can tell you're having trouble with this class. How about you team up with Mr Haddock from now on, and you can help each other! You stop him from blowing up more cauldrons, and he helps you with understanding the concepts," Slughorn shouted, and Hiccup froze in the middle of gathering up his ingredients.

"But I'm already working with Rayla," Astrid said, looking very embarrassed. For Hiccup the prospect of working with her dulled the pain of their classmates' clear disgust at the arrangement.

"Well, Rayla can work with Mr. Katolis. I know they're already getting along, so that should work out splendidly! Inter-house cooperation!" Slughorn said happily before turning away, making it clear the discussion was over.

"So… I g-guess we're now p-partners. W-Want to meet up sometime to prepare the next l-lesson?" Hiccup couldn't believe he was actually talking to the girl who made him feel so light and warm.

He could believe he was messing it up from the very start, based on her glare.

"I think I'll be fine on my own," she simply said before grabbing her bag and leaving the dungeon. Varian and the other Ravenclaws sniggered, while the Gryffindors simply followed their fellow lion.

Hiccup tried to think positively. Sure, she might hate working with him now, but maybe they could bond over making potions! Doing homework together! Maybe even expand it to other classes!

And maybe, just maybe, that tingling in his stomach she made him feel was what he needed to get his magic working.

* * *

"Bow. A little deeper, Toph."

Astrid looked through her bangs, not breaking her own bow, to see Professor Flitwick scold her opponent for her lazy bow. She smirked. Surely this couldn't be too hard. Toph might be good at wandless magic, but she was still blind.

"Now… begin!" Flitwick shouted, taking a step back and raising his hand, opening the duel.

Astrid raised her wand, but waited for a moment to see if Toph was going to strike first. The blind girl simply stood unmoving, bare feet firmly on the stone floor of the great hall where the dueling club met.

"_Stupefy_!" she shouted, casting a red beam of light directly at Toph. Toph stepped out of the way, the spell almost grazing her ear, before she stomped on the ground. A block of stone detached itself from the floor and floated into the air. A flick of her hand, and the block flew at Astrid's face.

She barely managed to jump out of the way before casting another spell. This time Toph raised a wall of stone up from the floor to block, before breaking launching more rocks back.

"_Reducto! Protego! Petrificus Totalus_!" Astrid cast spells as fast as she could, both to block incoming attacks and to strike back, hoping to catch Toph off-guard.

"Come on, Firebomb. You can do better than that," Toph taunted, shifting more stone to form a wall around herself. The dumb nickname made Astrid snap.

"_Stupefy_!" she cast the spell directly at the stone, her anger fueling the magic into a bright beam of pure energy. It struck the stone wall, making it explode into a cloud of dust.

When it cleared, Toph was frozen in place.

"Well done! Astrid wins! Good stance though, Toph. You stayed up even when stunned," Flitwick announced, quickly cancelling Toph's paralyzation. Astrid suddenly realized she was breathing heavily, sweat running down her face. She quickly wiped it off as Toph chuckled.

"That was quite the Earthbender move, Firebomb. A head-on attack. No sneaky movement, no different angle, just pure power. I can respect that," the blind girl said, brushing some dust off her sleeve. Astrid wasn't sure if she was being mocked. They shook hands before clearing the floor so some higher-years could duel.

"How do you do all this earth magic? And without a wand as well?" Astrid asked as they sat down.

"I learned from the badgermoles," Toph simply said, scratching at her ear. It took a second for Astrid to remember the blind girl couldn't see her raised eyebrow.

"Uh, what?" she said, unsure if Toph was serious.

"Badgermoles dig tunnels near where I live. One day when I was little I fell into one, and I didn't know how to get out. But they didn't attack me. Instead they showed me how they move around. They're blind like me, but they sense vibrations around them, and send out vibrations of their own and listen for the echo. I do that, but with magic. Magic is in everything, all you need to do is sense magic to know where everything is. And then you can send your own magic out to change everything," Toph said, gesturing with her hands.

"Wow. That sounds like what Flitwick keeps talking about, the 'magic is intent' stuff," Astrid said softly. She still had a lot of trouble with that theory. Whenever she did magic it just happened, she didn't think about it like Flitwick seemed to.

"Eh, it's still different. You Europeans have weird ideas about magic, with your wands and incantations. My dad's a Muggle, but he figured out I was magic early on and got me a teacher from China. Old friend of his. He taught me the basics of what we call bending, though Dad never let him teach me more than that. Too dangerous, he'd say. But yeah, I feel like you overcomplicate things. Magic is super simple, you just have to _do it_, not have a wand do it for you," Toph explained, sounding frustrated.

"Oh. I… I guess that makes sense," Astrid eventually replied, not thinking it made sense.

Toph was silent after that, resting her bare feet on the ground to sense the duel going on, and it felt like there was an invisible barrier between them. It felt like this was a _moment_, that if she could just say the right thing they wouldn't be in this weird state of not-quite-friends anymore. But her brain was empty. Before she could think of anything Rayla joined them and the moment was gone.

"Hey Astrid, did you see this? Special evening edition of the _Daily Prophet_! It mentions your uncle!" the white-haired girl said, showing a newspaper article.

_Auror Focus Shifts From Dark Wizards to Dangerous Creatures_

_Today Minister for Magic Kingsley Shacklebolt announced the new plans for law enforcement and defense, with a big change in the allocation of funds. Over half of the auror department is shifted towards hunting down dangerous creatures and patrolling the borders to prevent more coming in. Minister Shacklebolt said "The Death Eater threat is all but eradicated, while magical creatures, notably dragons like the Red Death, are claiming more and more lives. Our new priorities reflect this change in threat to the safety and security of all people in Britain, magical or muggle. _

_ Not everyone in the auror department agrees with the minister's assessment. Finn Hofferson, head of the now disbanded Task Force Against Dark Wizardry, commented "It's ridiculous. Death Eaters aren't gone, they've just gone underground. And they're still out there in the shadows, recruiting all kinds of people to their cause."_

_ Stoick Haddock, head of the Department for Magical Creatures, which has come under fire for its inability to hunt down the Red Death, is happy with the change, commenting that "It's time to eradicate the draconic threat once and for all, with the help of the Ministry's best aurors." _

_ Only time will tell whether these extra aurors can succeed at hunting the Red Death when so many before them failed._

"That's great news! The Red Death burned down our village, it needs to be stopped!" Merida said, her head right beside Astrid's, who squealed before realizing the Scot had been reading the article over her shoulder.

"I agree with my uncle. It's losing sight of the Death Eaters. He told me they're everywhere, probably even in Hogwarts!" Astrid said heatedly.

"Yeah right. Who'd even be a Death Eater here? Snotlout maybe? No wait, I know! Horrendous Hiccup! After all, his dad organized this shift in funds. It's all a biiiig conspiracy to revive Voldemort with the spellcasting of a friggin squib!" Toph laughed, the sound echoing around the hall. Astrid knew she was being mocked, but she couldn't help but think the sarcastic idea might actually be plausible. That Stoick Haddock was suspicious.

But voicing that would only widen the rift between her and the others. She suddenly couldn't take it anymore, and stood up abruptly.

"Just going to the bathroom," she muttered, grabbing her bag before walking out of the crowded room as quickly as she could.

The bathroom was empty, so she turned on the faucet and splashed water over her face. That way no one could see her tears fall. What was wrong with her? Why was she so upset over… nothing? They just had a conversation about magic. And yet she felt like a failure, like she would be forever alone with Toph laughing at everything she did.

"Calm down. Just calm down. What kind of hero are you if you can't even handle this?" she told her reflection. The girl in the mirror looked back, eyes wide and bloodshot, and said nothing.

Frantically she dug in her bag for her sister's diary and opened it to today's date. How did Celia make friends? Maybe she could learn from that.

_October 15th_

_Dear Diary,_

_Sorry I couldn't write last night! We weren't allowed into Gryffindor Tower because Sirius Black had tried to get in here! The Fat Lady's portrait was all cut up, and the teachers were really worried. Dumbledore had us all sleep in the Great Hall instead, but we didn't do much sleeping. I tried to convince the others that we should search for Black. We know all the secret corridors and rooms! _

_But no, it's too dangerous! Chang was too scared, said Black would kill us like he killed those muggles. Dennis got a bit scared at that, since he's muggleborn, but I told him we're no weak muggles. We've got magic, we can fight off the dark wizards just like Harry Potter does. They say Black is after Harry, so it's not fair he has to do it all alone. We could help, unlike the teachers! Jackie and Dennis agreed eventually, but Snape caught us. He even took points! It's not fair! They just want to pretend everything is fine when it isn't. Why should we care about points when there's a murderer on the loose?_

_Sorry, that got way too long. I'm super tired, so I'm gonna go sleep now. At least we can sleep in our own bed again. Chang is still scared Black will come back here, but if he does, I'll just stun him. We learned that spell today, and Professor Lupin even told me I was really good at it! I like Professor Lupin, he trusts us to stand up to Black if we have to. Anyway, off to bed!_

The entry ended there, and Astrid wasn't sure if she felt better. Celia had been going through actual scary stuff with real Death Eaters and still managed to convince her friends to fight back. But now the Death Eaters were coming back, Astrid knew it, but no one else seemed to care!

Well, then she would just have to train and fight on her own. Where had Celia's friends been during the Battle anyway? They had all fled. Celia had been the only fifth-year to stay behind and fight for what's right.

Astrid would do the same. So she wiped the last tears away and went back to the dueling club, determined to be stronger than every one of them.

Any of them might be a Death Eater out for her life, after all.

* * *

"Are you gonna babysit me the entire Christmas break?" Hiccup asked Gobber sarcastically as they walked across platform nine and three-quarters, glancing again at his father's letter. It had arrived this morning, right before they boarded the Hogwarts Express back to London for winter break.

_Dear Hiccup,_

_Because of work I'll be in Norway during your break. Negotiations about Norwegian dragons flying across the North Sea. I'm sure you understand. Mrs. Beakley will take care of you as always, and Gobber will escort you to and from the train. Beakley's granddaughter Webby will also be at the manor._

_Gobber told me your grades are decent. Keep it up!_

_Merry Christmas,_

_Stoick_

If he was honest Hiccup wasn't surprised. Stoick often went on long diplomatic trips and dragon hunts, and it wouldn't be the first holiday he spent without his dad. But as he put the letter back in his pocket and his fingers brushed his unresponsive wand it hurt more than usual.

"Nah, just on the Knight's Bus, though I'll also drop by on Christmas Eve. I'm just sorry I had to pull you away from your friends," Gobber said, gesturing at the other Ravenclaws Hiccup had shared a cabin with during the train ride. He wasn't sure if they were actually friends. Over the past months the rift between them had only grown as he kept failing at magic while they worked on muggle science he didn't understand. They weren't as mean to him as some of the older students, but he wasn't sure how to bridge the gap.

So he just shrugged and followed Gobber through the gate to King's Cross, and then to a back alley where they summoned the Knight's Bus. Hiccup tried to read up on his transfiguration homework during the wild ride to Haddock Manor, but he barely managed to finish a paragraph. Well, plenty of time alone to work on it for the rest of December.

"Welcome back, Mister Hiccup. Good to see you too, Mr. Belch. Thank you for escorting him," Mrs. Beakley, the housekeeper, said as they entered the mansion. She quickly took his suitcase and sent it to his room with magic.

"Hiccup! How was Hogwarts? Did you meet many famous wizards and witches? Did you have any adventures? What is the Sorting Hat like?" Webby, Beakley's granddaughter, shouted as she ran down the stairs and right up to him. The 9-year old's enthusiasm made him smile.

"Easy there, Webby. Let him breathe, he had a long journey and I'm sure he'd like to lay down for a bit. Dinner will be served in half an hour, so I'll collect you then," Beakley said, ushering Webby out of the hall gently. Next to Hiccup, Gobber chuckled.

"That Webby. Limitless energy. You used to be like that as well. It's probably still in there somewhere. Hogwarts seems to make you calmer. Quieter. Or maybe that's just growing up," Gobber said. Before Hiccup could think of an answer to that he spoke again.

"Anyway, I'll be off now. Lots of errands to run! See you at Christmas, Hiccup!"

A quick goodbye and Hiccup was alone and able to focus on his surroundings.

The first thing he realized was that the house was as cold as he remembered it. As he walked to his room through badly lit hallways he remembered his father explaining that heating and lighting such an enormous mansion was a waste of money.

With a deep sigh he fell on his bed, though he wasn't tired. Deep inside he could feel energy swirling and churning, like a raging ocean drowning his muscles. Sparks ran down his arms to his fingertips, threatening to escape. He quickly clamped his hands under his armpits, hoping the wave of uncontrolled magic would eb away soon. For a brief second he considered grabbing his wand to try and focus it into a spell, but then he remembered he wasn't allowed to do magic outside of Hogwarts. Not to mention he's probably blow up his bedroom anyway.

"Dinner is ready!" Webby's shouted from the kitchen, the too-large hallways creating an echo.

"Coming!" he shouted back, doing his best to make the coils of magic behave for a few hours. He'd just have to make it through dinner. Then the rest of Christmas. And then 6 and a half more years at Hogwarts.

As he sat up a shadow fell over him, but by the time his eyes had moved to the window the setting sun was visible again. For a moment Hiccup could have sworn he'd seen a black dragon fly past the house. Then his mind caught up to him and he chuckled. What a ridiculous idea. A dragon here, outside the home of the most determined dragonslayer in Europe?

And yet he couldn't quite shake the feeling that there were more than three people inside the grounds of Haddock Manor.

* * *

"Wake up, sleepyhead! It's your birthday!" Aunt Erica shouted as she opened Astrid's bedroom door. The girl stirred from her restless sleep, memories of her dream slipping away like water between her fingers. Something about Vikings.

"I'm up, I'm up," she mumbled, before processing her aunt's words. It was indeed her twelfth birthday. December 22nd. In an instant she was wide awake.

"I'll be right down!" she said, jumping out of bed and grabbing some clothes. Erica chuckled, but didn't say anything.

A few minutes later Astrid had freshened up and dressed, and she ran down the narrow steps to the small living room. The smell of bacon and eggs wafted from the kitchen where Uncle Finn was making breakfast.

"That's my little warrior! From deep sleep to battle-ready in less than 10 minutes. Will you be going on your morning run or shall we do presents first?" he asked, laughing when she hesitatingly said presents.

For as long as Astrid had lived here with her aunt and uncle they had combined Christmas with her birthday since they were so close together. So it was a familiar schedule when they sat down next to the tree after breakfast with cups of hot cocoa.

"Before we open presents, you should have this. It arrived for you this morning," Aunt Erica said, handing her a postcard. She instantly recognized her brother's neat handwriting, but decided to turn it over and look at the picture first.

It was a muggle photograph showing a coastal city of beige stone. There were enormous battlements all around the city, and a large cathedral near the center of town. The weather looked hot and sunny, unlike the snow she could see outside the window. Astrid wasn't sure which city it was, until she looked at the corner of the card. It said "Valletta, Malta"

Frowning, she turned the card back to the written side and began reading her brother's message.

_Dear Astrid,_

_I'm writing to you from Malta, a small island in the Mediterranean Sea! There's a long history of healing and medicine here, both magical and muggle, so I've moved here to study Healing for a year. Got sick of Rome, it reminded me too much of London with its busy streets and people always in a rush. I'm sorry I can't come to England for the holidays, but you know how expensive Portkeys are. _

_Anyway, happy birthday and Merry Christmas! Twelve already and a Hogwarts student! Uncle Finn told me you're sorted into Gryffindor, and are at the top of the dueling club. That's very impressive of you, already able to slaughter anyone you deem an enemy when you're barely even a teenager. A true lion. I did pretty well in the dueling club when I was at Hogwarts, though not as good as Celia. I'm sure she'd be proud of you. Just remember that if you seek out real combat, it's nothing like those clean duels. Doing well there doesn't mean you won't freeze when facing Death Eaters. But I'm sure you'll do better than Celia did. _

_Love,_

_Your brother Max_

Astrid was surprised by Max's awkward letter. They had only seen each other once since their family was torn apart by the Battle, when Max visited for a memorial service when Astrid was 6 years old. And even then he had only been in England for two days before leaving for Germany again. The rest of their communication was through Christmas cards and the occasional letter to her aunt and uncle. She knew his excuse about expensive Portkeys was just that, a stupid excuse to not have to come back to Britain, but at this point she couldn't even be angry about it.

But even by that standard this letter was strange. Was he mocking her success at dueling? Not to mention the passive-aggressive mention of her being a true lion. Max had been a Slytherin, while Celia had been a Gryffindor, so it may have just been old sibling rivalry? But the last sentence seemed so insulting to her sister, who had died fighting Death Eaters in the Battle. What was that about?

She sighed, and her confusion must have been clear on her face as Uncle Finn put his arm around her shoulder and gently squeezed her arm.

"I'm sorry Max can't be here. But we're here, and we're your family too. Never forget that. We love you like you're our own daughter. We always have. Now, come here." He opened his arms wide, and despite wanting to seem strong like him Astrid couldn't resist moving closer for a hug. A moment later Aunt Erica joined in as well, and she couldn't care less about her brother anymore.

"Can we… Can we visit Dad's and Celia's graves this afternoon?" she softly asked, wiping at her eyes.

"Of course. We've kept them clean while you were at Hogwarts. They would be so, so proud of you. And your mom as well, wherever she is," Aunt Erica said, tears choking her voice.

"But first, let's open these presents!" Finn chuckled, grabbing a huge box from under the tree and handing it to Astrid.

* * *

The sun was setting by the time they returned home from the cemetery. Astrid had left flowers on the graves and her mother's memorial. No one knew what had happened to Hannah Hofferson. It had been a cold February day a few months before the Battle of Hogwarts, when she left the Order's headquarters and never arrived home. Astrid knew that it was likely a Death Eater attack. Her parents had part of the Order of the Phoenix, helping Muggleborns get out of Britain.

But on days like these Astrid still wondered if her mom was out there, somewhere. Obliviated perhaps.

Of course the odds of that were astronomical. That's why they built the memorial next to her father's grave, as a substitute grave for a body they'd probably never find.

Visiting the cemetery always exhausted Astrid, and today was no different. So Finn and Erica were not surprised when she excused herself and went to her room. Desperate for some comfort she grabbed her sister's diary and flipped to today's date. Her birthday.

_Dear Diary,_

_I have a baby sister! It's incredible! Dad woke me up early this morning because the baby was coming and we had to go to St. Mungo's. Mom had already been moved there by Healers. Max had to be all annoying about it. He took forever in the bathroom even though Dad told us to hurry up. _

_We got a special Portkey to go to St. Mungo's! I never used a Portkey before, they feel so weird! Once we were there we had to wait outside with Uncle Finn and Aunt Erica. It took hours, but eventually we were let in. Mom looked exhausted but she also had the biggest smile on her face. So did Dad. They couldn't stop staring at the little baby Mom was holding. A little sister! Her name is Astrid._

_Jackie had a baby brother right before coming to Hogwarts, and she hates it. I don't understand why! I fell in love with Astrid the moment I saw her. I've never felt so protective of anyone or anything before! I even got to hold her for a bit, until she started crying and Mom took her back. Max didn't look impressed, but I think he loves her as well, in his own dumb way. _

_We're staying with Uncle Finn until Mom is released from the hospital. Dad told us not to worry, that they just want to be sure she's fine. I can't wait to go back tomorrow and see Astrid again!_

As she finished reading the entry Astrid wondered if Max still loved her 'in his own dumb way'. She wasn't sure if she loved him if she was honest. She barely remembered what he looked like.

No, those were stupid thoughts. Like Uncle Finn said, she still had a family that loves her, and she was top of her class at Hogwarts. There was no reason to feel hung up on a brother she barely knew. There was no reason at all to have nightmares or to feel nauseous over dumb things. Her life was good, it was peacetime, she was safe and secure and loved.

And yet when she went to sleep that night it took hours before she stopped tossing and turning. It was not a good sleep. Instead she had a nightmare about her mother's body lying in an alley of the stone city Max lived in now.


End file.
